Spherical particles, ranging from the nano to microscale, are pivotal tools in biotechnology. Because of their unique combination of physical and chemical properties, they can be precisely designed for many applications such as drug delivery, bioimaging, separation and purification, and tissue engineering. Spheres allow for high packing density and create more uniform and isotropic pore structures when packed, crucial for their applications. Compared to other shapes, the minimum surface area-to-volume ratio of spherical shape can influence wetting, binder demand in formulations, and stress distribution. In addition to the geometry, the functionality of spherical particles is determined by their size, surface characteristics, and material composition.
Particle size is a critical parameter influencing the interaction between spherical particles and biological systems. Nanospheres (1-1000 nm) exhibit a high surface area-to-volume ratio, enhancing reactivity and enabling them to cross biological barriers. The optimal size for drug delivery vectors is generally considered to be in the 10-200 nm range. Microspheres with diameters between 1 µm and 1000 µm have a variety of possible applications, such as carrier materials for the purification, as indicators in detection tests, or as calibrators for instruments.
The surface of spherical particles is a critical interface for biological interactions. It can be modified or functionalized with various molecules, including polymers, antibodies, peptides, aptamers, or targeting ligands. The surface modifications are important to improve the properties of spherical particles, such as enhancing biocompatibility, ensuring colloid stability, and achieving targeted delivery to specific cells or tissues. In addition, introducing porosity into spherical particles significantly increases their surface area, providing ample space for loading drugs, proteins, or other biomolecules. Porous particles are extensively used in chromatography for bioseparation, as carriers for controlled release systems, and as scaffolds in tissue engineering.
Spherical particles can be made of polymers, ceramics, glasses, metals, or other materials, and spherical particles made of different materials have specific properties. Common polymeric spherical particles are used in drug delivery, cell encapsulation, and tissue engineering scaffolds due to their versatility in composition, degradability, and functionalization, as well as the ability to be engineered into solid spheres, hollow spheres, or porous matrices. Due to their unique and tunable physicochemical properties and the inherent properties of metallic materials, metal spherical particles are commonly used in bioimaging, biosensors, targeted therapy development, biological separation and other applications.
Amerigo Scientific offers a wide range of high-precision and high-quality spheres, microspheres and nanospheres. These spherical particles are made of glass, polymers, ceramics, or metals, with particle sizes ranging from nanometers to millimeters. A variety of densities, colors, and specific functions (such as fluorescence, phosphorescence, conductivity, paramagnetism, neutral buoyancy, and density labeling) are available.
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